February 19, 2004

CONTACT:
Matthew Nehmer: (202) 994-6467; nehmer@gwu.edu

GW WELCOMES THE PRESIDENT OF GEORGIA,
MIKHEIL SAAKASHVILI
FEBRUARY 22

President Saakashvili to Receive GW President's Medal

EVENT: 

A reception and GW President's Medal presentation for Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili

WHEN: 

Sunday, February 22, 2004, 8 - 9:30 p.m.

WHERE:   

The George Washington University
Marvin Center, Continental Ballroom, Third Floor
800 21st Street, Washington, D.C.
(GWU-Foggy Bottom Metro, Blue and Orange Lines)

WHO:  

Stephen Joel Trachtenberg, GW president
The Honorable Levan Mikeladze, ambassador of Georgia to the United States
Mikheil Saakashvili, president of Georgia
  
BACKGROUND:

Mikheil Saakashvili was elected as president of Georgia on January 4, 2004, with 96 percent of the vote. This landslide victory followed a peaceful "Revolution of Roses" in November 2003, which resulted in former Georgian President Eduard Shevardnadze?s resignation.

A former student at the GW Law School, Saakashvili served as chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Legal Issues, Rule of Law and Administrative Reform, chairman of the Majority Fraction of the Georgian Parliament and later as justice minister of Georgia. He resigned from this post in September 2001 and formed the opposition National Movement. After his party's success in local elections of June 2002 Saakashvili was elected the chairman of the Tbilisi City Assembly. 

Established in 1988, The George Washington University's President's Medal is the highest honor awarded by the president of the University. The President's Medal recognizes the distinctive achievements of each recipient. Past medal recipients include Vaclav Havel, Romanian President Ion Iliescu, Mikhail Gorbachev, Walter Cronkite and Abba Eban.

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